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Victoria Vetter, MD, Receives Prestigious Award from AHA

February 11, 2013 — The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is pleased to announce that Victoria L. Vetter, MD, MPH, a pediatric cardiologist, was awarded the prestigious Edward S. Cooper MD Award at the American Heart Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania’s annual Heart Ball this weekend. Dr. Vetter is the first female and first pediatric cardiologist to receive this award.

The Edward S. Cooper MD Award is presented by the American Heart Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania to a physician, researcher or medical professional whose many outstanding contributions to the Philadelphia community exemplify the best of humankind. The award is named for Dr. Edward S. Cooper, a world-renowned physician and a pioneer in hypertension and stroke, and the first African American to serve as national president of the American Heart Association.

“Dr. Vetter is truly a pioneer in the field of electrophyisiology in children. She’s applied adult- oriented practice to pediatrics, and has shown that children could have electrical problems with their heart function, and that treatment options and interventions were possible,” said Steven M. Altschuler, MD, chief executive officer of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “There are very few physicians that can make a difference at not only an individual level, but on a global level, and Dr. Vetter’s passion for her work make this award so well deserved.”

Dr. Vetter graduated with her undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Kentucky, received her pediatric training at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Vanderbilt University Hospital, and trained in pediatric cardiology and electrophysiology at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where she has been since her training. She served as Chief of the Division of Cardiology at CHOP for 14 years, until 2007. She is also a professor of Pediatrics in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Vetter is the Medical Director of Youth Heart Watch at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, an affiliate of Project ADAM, a national program aimed to prevent sudden cardiac arrest by automated external defibrillator (AED) implementation within schools. She has worked tirelessly to ensure that the middle and high schools in the Philadelphia School District are equipped with AEDs and staff and students are trained to use the equipment properly. Youth Heart Watch works toward eradicating sudden cardiac death through research, education, prevention and advocacy.

She lives in Cherry Hill, NJ, with her husband and has three grown children.